{"id":30444,"date":"2022-06-03T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-06-03T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/?p=30444"},"modified":"2023-06-06T15:47:09","modified_gmt":"2023-06-06T19:47:09","slug":"common-chevy-silverado-truck-u-joint-problems","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/blog\/common-chevy-silverado-truck-u-joint-problems\/","title":{"rendered":"Most Common U-Joint Problems On A Chevy Silverado"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>The Chevrolet Silverado is a great truck. Yet, it&#8217;s prone to u-joint issues. If you&#8217;re a Silverado owner with u-joint issues, you came to the right place. In this guide we&#8217;ll cover<span style=\"font-size: revert;color: initial;, sans-serif\"> Silverado u-joint failure symptoms<\/span>, diagnostic tips, repair tips, and recommended replacement parts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Chevrolet Silverado U-Joint Failure Symptoms<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"388\" src=\"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/08-silverado.jpeg\" alt=\"chevy silverado\" class=\"wp-image-30445\" srcset=\"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/08-silverado.jpeg 640w, https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/08-silverado-450x273.jpeg 450w, https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/08-silverado-600x364.jpeg 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Squeaking noise when the truck starts to move forward or back<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Clunking with a ringing sound when you shift the transmission from drive to reverse<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Vibration felt throughout the truck when driving<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Transmission fluid leaks<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Banging sound<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Complete loss of power (this means the driveshaft has come loose)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">U-Joint Diagnosis And Repair Tips<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Under normal circumstances, u-joints should last 100k miles or more. That doesn&#8217;t always happen, though. If one of your Silverado&#8217;s u-joints fails, it&#8217;s best to replace it ASAP. If you fail to replace your u-joints, other parts (such as the transmission, differential, and driveshaft) can get damaged. That means you&#8217;d be facing thousands of dollars in repairs. <a href=\"\/blog\/why-replace-u-joints\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">This post does a good job explaining why it&#8217;s in your best interests to replace a failing u-joint right away<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you&#8217;re not sure whether your u-joints have failed, <a href=\"\/blog\/in-doubt-change-out\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">it&#8217;s best to replace them anyway<\/a>. It&#8217;s better to be safe than sorry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Replacing your Silverado&#8217;s u-joints is an easy job. You can do it yourself, or take it to a mechanic. The cost of replacement will vary depending on the type of u-joint you choose and the labor involved. But it&#8217;s a small price to pay for peace of mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Recommended Replacement U-Joints<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>When it comes to finding a replacement u-joint, quality matters. A quality u-joint that&#8217;s built to OE specs will last a long time. You can&#8217;t go wrong with GMB <a href=\"\/products\/universal-joint\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">for the reasons listed here<\/a>. Here are the recommended GMB replacement u-joints for Silverado trucks:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>1999-2005 Silverado: <a href=\"\/product\/210-3105\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">GMB u-joint #210-3105<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>1999-2013 Silverado: <a href=\"\/product\/215-3105\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">GMB u-joint #215-3105<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>2001-2010 Silverado: <a href=\"\/product\/210-0447\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">GMB u-joint #210-0447<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>2002 Silverado: <a href=\"\/product\/210-0178\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">GMB u-joint #210-0178<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>2002-2007 Silverado: <a href=\"\/product\/210-1203\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">GMB u-joint #210-1203<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>2006-2007 Silverado: <a href=\"\/product\/210-0213\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">GMB u-joint #210-0213<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>2006-2011 Silverado: <a href=\"\/product\/215-0178\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">GMB u-joint #215-0178<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>If you don&#8217;t see your Silverado in this list, please look it up in our catalog of GMB u-joints to find the right part number.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why Do Chevrolet Silverado Trucks Have U-Joint Problems?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/u-joint-repair.jpeg\" alt=\"ujoint repair\" class=\"wp-image-30446\" srcset=\"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/u-joint-repair.jpeg 640w, https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/u-joint-repair-450x253.jpeg 450w, https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/u-joint-repair-600x338.jpeg 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Here are the 3 most common reasons why Silverado trucks have u-joint problems:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">1. U-Joint Falling Apart Due To Steep Operating Angles<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Many Silverado owners lift their trucks. Lifting the truck will change the angle at which the driveshaft meets the transfer case and differential. The u-joints must flex more to handle the angle change. This works for a while, but it will cause the u-joints to wear out more quickly. It&#8217;s because they are moving farther with each rotation of the driveshaft.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As the u-joints wear, they begin to loosen up. This allows more vibration to occur. The increased vibration causes problems:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>It accelerates the wear in the u-joint<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It can damage the seals in the u-joints, reducing lubrication<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Both of these issues will eventually lead to total u-joint failure. If you decide to lift your Silverado, inspect the u-joints. You want to make sure that the operating angles are still within spec. If you put a big lift on, look into high angle u-joints that are designed to handle higher than stock operating angles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">2. U-Joints Breaking Under Heavy Loads<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Silverados are often used for towing and hauling heavy loads. This puts a lot of stress on the u-joints and causes them to wear out faster. If you tow often, and you are over 50k miles on your Silverado, it pays to inspect the u-joints at every oil change. Murphy&#8217;s law would say that your u-joints won&#8217;t fail when you are driving around town, but when you&#8217;re towing something heavy a long distance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">3. Lack Of Lubrication<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Most newer trucks come from the factory with u-joints that can&#8217;t be lubricated. So how can lack of lubrication cause them to fail? It&#8217;s simple wear and tear. As the miles accumulate, the u-joint seals start to fail. Centrifugal force causes the grease in the u-joint to leak out past the seal when the driveshaft is spinning. On the highway, your driveshaft could be spinning at 3,000 &#8211; 3,000 rpm, depending on your gearing. So there is a lot of centrifugal force acting on the grease in the u-joints. When a u-joint is failing, you can often see a stripe of grease on the underside of the truck just above the u-joint. It was thrown there by the rotation of the driveshaft. If you see the stripe, inspect the u-joint and the output seal near the u-joint. One or both has gone bad.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Chevrolet Silverado is a great truck. Yet, it&#8217;s prone to u-joint issues. If you&#8217;re a Silverado owner with u-joint issues, you came to the right place. In this guide we&#8217;ll cover Silverado u-joint failure symptoms, diagnostic tips, repair tips, and recommended replacement parts.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":30446,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_searchwp_excluded":"","editor_notices":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[46,60],"tags":[47,90045],"class_list":["post-30444","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-maintenance-tips","category-undercar","tag-u-joints","tag-universal-joint"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30444","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30444"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30444\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/30446"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30444"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30444"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gmb.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30444"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}